Composite partitioning and spacing element and combination thereof with a container



Oct. 5, 1948. J. ca. 'HUYE v 2,450,801

COMPOSITE PARTITIONING. AND SPACING ELEMENT AND COMBINATION THEREOF WITH A CONTAINER Filed March 19, 1945 2 Sheets-Sheet l JQBEPH 6. Hl/YE,

Oct. 5, 1948. HUYE COMPOSITE PARTITIONING AND SPAGING ELEMENT AND CONBINATION THEREOF WITH A CONTAINER 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 19, 1945 Patented Oct. 5, 1948 COMPOSITE PABTITIONING AND SPACING ELEMENT AND COIVIBINATION THEREOF WITH A CONTAINER Joseph G. Huye, New Orleans, La.; Charlotte Huye and Merle Huye, legatees, by judgment of possession, of said Joseph G. Huye, deceased, assignors to Huye Space Saving Box System, Inc., New Orleans, La.

Application March 19, 1945, Serial No. 583,425 1 6 Claims. ((1229-15 This invention relates to composite or combination partition and spacing or supporting means and the combination thereof with a box or container. While the field of primary use now contemplated for the invention is in connection with chick boxes for shipping day old chicks from the hatchery to the customer, the invention is not limited to use in this field but will be found useful wherever it is desired to divide a container by partition means and to guard against the sides or ends of the container spreading or bulging or wherever it is desired to carry the Weight of superposed boxes in a stack upon some supporting or spacing means or to provide for ventilation of the boxes in superposed relation in the stack.

The primary objects of the invention are to provide a composite partitioning and supporting or spacing means; to provide'means for interlocking the end portions of the partition or portions of the partition with the respective ends of sides of the container and in contact with the exterior faces thereof to prevent bulging of the latter; to provide such a composite element which may be shipped or stored in flat sheet condition as illustrated in Figure 7 and folded into setup condition as shown in Fig. 6 for operative use in, and combination with, a box, as shown in Figures 1 and 2; to provide efiicient simple, quick and positive means for locking the individual spacing or supporting means in erected condition, and to provide a construction facilitating the re-entry of the confining and positioning lug in the slot opening and the flexing of the protruding end portion to overlie the exterior face of the box adjacent the slot openings.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 represents a perspective view of a chick box embodying my invention;

Figure 2, a top plan view thereof with the cover B removed; 1

Figure 3, a fragmentary elevation, on a greatly enlarged scale of a portion of the box body A with a composite partition and spacer or support interlocked therewith or therein;

Figure 4, a sectional view on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3; looking in the direction of the arrows;

Figure 5, a sectional view on the line 5-5 of Fig. 3, looking in the direction of the arrows;

Figure 6, a perspective exploded view showing the end portion of the composite partition and support or spacer in the act of being applied to the corresponding slotted portion of the side or end of the body A of the box; and

Figure 7, a plan view of an end portion of one i of said composite elements in knocked-down or flattened out or sheet-form condition.

Referring now in detail to the, drawings, A

designates the box body; B the box top or cover;

C the usual ventilating holes or openings in the sides of the body A and in the top or cover B, and r l the partition elements arranged in intersecting relation to divide the interior of the body A'into four compartments with their portions at the point of intersection notched out so that the notch of the one receives the neck of the other, as shown for instance in Figures 4' and 5 of Patent No. 2,319,924, granted May 25, 1943, on the invention of Kenneth C. Ferguson, and the end portions of said elements I creased or scored on fold lines 3, 5 and 'I defining respectively panels 4 between score lines 3 and 5, 6 between score lines 5 and I, and 8 between score line I and the end of the element, the said panels to be folded along said score lines into a supporting post or pillarof triangular shape in cross section and locked or held in such folded or erected condition by the locking tab or tongue 2 integral with element I and so located lengthwise thereof that when folded down to horizontal position along the scored line I6 its inclined edge I5 will be substantially in contact for substantially its full length with the adjacent slanting face of the panel '6, as shown in Figures 2 and 6, whereby each of the locking tabs or tongues 2 serves, to

, lock or latch the corresponding supporting or spacingpillars or posts composed of the panels 4, 6 and 8, in erected or set-up operative condition. It is to be noted that the free edge or free end edge of panel 8 is spaced from panel 4, as shown in Figures 2, 5 and 6, sufficiently to allow panel 8 to be shoved toward panel 4 to such extent as will permit the lock or latch tab or tongue 2 to be folded back to its original vertical position to free or unlatch the erected post or pillar and permit it to be knocked down to flat shipping or storing condition again.

A portion of the panel 4 of each post or spacer or support at the respective end portions of the respective elements I will be cut out to form interlocking tongues 9 integral with the respective elements I and respectively to extend through slots I I formed for cooperation therewith inthe sides and ends of the body A andto be folded back respectively upon themselves along the respective score lines I0 to have their extreme end edges presented toward, and closely adjacent to,

the respective adjacent portions of the outer facesv ofthe respective sides and ends ofxthe body A,- a confining and position lug l3 respective integral with each of the interlocking tongues 9 and extending in the plane thereof beyond the remainder of the free end edges of said tongues 9 is so positioned as to respectively snap into the respective notches I=2 of the respective slots II when the two panels of said locking tongues 9 are squeezed or pressed together at their central portions after insertion through a slot II.

Preferably the central portion of the respective scored lines ID will be completely out through as at I4 for a short distance, preferably slightly less in length than the corresponding confining and positioning lug I3 to facilitate the easy fold along the scored lines l and; also to relieve stresses and release the upper and lower portions of the inwardly presented panels of the respective tongues 9 to swing outwardly to overliethe respective opposed exterior face portions of the ends and sides of the box body A adjacent the respective slots II. Preferably each end portion of each of the respective elements a I is formed with a short spacing rib or flange H, see Fig. 6, projecting endwise beyond the exterior face of the corresponding panel 4immediately above the locking tongue 9 to respectively engage the interior face of the respective sides and ends above and in line with the upper ends of the respective slots I I to space the outer faces of the panels 4 of the respective supporting posts or spaces from the respective corresponding inner face portions of the respeclive sides and ends'a sufiicientdistance to allow of the retention of a horizontal flange or top portion of the cover B between its inner edge and the skirt} of the cover B of sufiicient width to be of substantial strength and guard the said skirt of the cover '13 against damage in the normal handling of the box under normal use conditions in its intended field'ofuse.

The cover B will have a perforated top panel and a depending lip orskirt or flange to fit about and receive the upperportionof the body A and will be formed with four triangularly shaped openings to receive the upper ends of the supportmg or spacing posts .or members, as illustrated in Figure 1, and preferablywill be of a collapsible knock-down set-up construction so that it may be shipped and stored in fiat condition and may be erected to operative "condition or collapsed to flattened condition to be returned to the shipper for re-use. Preferably it will be; of an interlocking-corner construction substantially as shown in my Patent No, 2,193,925, granted March 19, 1940', though for the purposes of the present invention it may be of any construction so long as it is so formed as to properly fit on the body A and to receivethe upper portions of the spacing members'or supporting posts.

Preferably the body A will ice of a collapsible knock-down set up construction for the same rea-: sons as mentioned with relation to the cover B andpreferably will be of the interlocking corner construction mentioned, though for the purposes of the present invention it may be of any construction solong as it has the slots I I' properly positioned and formed with the notches I2.

' The elements I with their preferably integral panels 4', Band 8', latches or locking tabs or tongues 2, interlocking tongues 9 with their confining and positioning lugs I3 and their spacing ribs-or flanges 11 will preferably be formed of sheetmaterial or at least some inherent slight resiliency, suchfor example as corrugated or plain paperboard or paste board, the inherent resiliency causing the free end portions of the interlocking tongues to swing on the scored line I 0 away from the connected end so as to overlie the adjacent outer face portions respectively of the sides and ends of body A, and causing the panels 4, 6 and 8 to swing about the scored lines 3, 5 and I to press against the inclined edge faces I 5 of the latches 2 respectively.

I claim:

1. ,A composite partitioning and spacing element having end portions divided by scored lines into a plurality of panels and fold-able along said scored lines to constitute a vertically extending tubular spacing :or supporting post at each end portion of 'said element, in combination with means respectively integral with said element and respectively movable to planes perpendicular to the plane of the partitioning portion of said element to respectively overlie portions of the faces of panels of the respective spacing or supporting posts to maintain the same in erected condition.

A composite partitioning and spacing element having integral end portions respectively to be'erected into respectively vertically extending tubular spacing or supporting posts, in combination with means integrally connected to said element and foldable to a substantially horizontal plane for respectively locking said spacing or supporting posts in erected condition.

3. A' composite partitioning and spacing element having integral end portions respectively to [be erected into respectively vertically extending tubular spacing or supporting posts, in combinationwith means carried by said element to engage opposed walls of a container to properly position said element therein, and means carried by said element for locking said posts in erected condition, a

4; A composite partitioning and spacing element having integral end portions respectively tobe erected into respectively vertically extending tubular spacing or supporting posts, in combination with means respectively integral with and extending from said element to respectively engage opposed walls of a container to properly position said element therein, and means integral with said element for locking said posts in erected condition;

5 A composite partitioning and, spacing element having end portions each comprising a plurality of panels relatively folded along vertical linesto form vertically disposed tubular posts, one of thepanelsof each said post extending diagona'lly and having a vertical edge abutting against said element, in combination with a locking tab integral'with said element and foldable relative thereto into a substantially horizontal plane, said tab having an inclined edge to engage the face of said diagonally extending panel.

6.- The combination with a container body having linearly extending slots in opposed walls thereof, of an inherently resilient sheet material partition element disposed in said container between said; walls and having locking tongues projecting outwardly through saidslots, said slots and .saidlocking tongues in operative assembled condition lbeinglinearly substantially coextensive, said locking tongues respectively being resiliently reversely 'folded upon themselves and having free endportions to resiliently partial-1y unfold after passingthrough their respective slots to move out of lateral registry therewith, and lugs projecting from the'reversely folded free ends of said loclb r 6 ing tongues into said respective slots to prevent UNITED STATES PATENTS complete unfolding of 'said locking tongues. Number Name Date JOSEPH HUYE- 2,074,090 Loth Mar. 16, 1937 2,288,457 Inman June 30, 1942 REFERENCES CITED 5 2,299,812 Ferguson .001; 27, 1942 The following references are of record in the 2,319,924 Ferguson May 25, 1943 file of this patent: 2,349,364 Marshall, Jr May 23, 1944 

